I think the forward group has too many question marks to be considered anything but extremely average. Not bad, absolutely. But not on a contender level.

Can Stepan maintain? Can Brass/Zuke extend their end of season run over 82 games? Will BR rebound at all? Will Kreider develop? Are any of Miller/Lindberg/Fast ready? Who will win board battles? Will the 4th line be able to take a regular shift?

Yeah, there are a lot of questions. But we aren't in a position to really do too much about it. So I'd rather be optimistic about the situation and just wait and see how it plays out.